


100 Easy Ways to Lose a Man: Will Byers Edition

by TheDesertPenguin (PANguin)



Category: Stranger Things (TV 2016)
Genre: All I know is that the Upside down is not around, Attempt at Humor, Fluff, I literally have no clue when this takes place, Implied/Referenced Homophobia, LITERALLY, Like I wrote this in a day, M/M, Mike Wheeler Is a Little Shit, Not actually 100 ways I’m not crazy, Obviously this is loosely based off 100 Easy Way from Wonderful Town, This is lowkey stupid, We stan a Mike and Will friendship though, Will is a Mess, there's barely any angst, this was fun to write
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-27
Updated: 2019-10-27
Packaged: 2021-01-04 09:01:32
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,512
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21195080
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PANguin/pseuds/TheDesertPenguin
Summary: Will finds himself constantly embarrassed with the male speciesOr technically one really cute guy





	100 Easy Ways to Lose a Man: Will Byers Edition

  1. ** Make an awkward first impression**

For what felt like the first time in Will Byers’ life he was confident. He had finally convinced his mom, in the 17 years of his life, to let him get an actual haircut. No more was the odd bowl cut, now it was shorter and actually had a style to it. Yes, he finally could look people in the eyes and they wouldn’t think ‘coconut head’. Now they might think, hey there’s the quiet art boy, which in his eyes was better. He carded his hands through the soft brown locks one more time, happy with the result. His smile was evident as he entered the Wheeler’s basement and everyone went silent.

At least that’s what he’d like to think and luckily, they somewhat indulged him.

“Your hair dude!” Dustin cheered, “it looks so good,”

“Thanks,” Will muttered ducking his head shyly. Okay, just because he’s confident doesn’t mean he could take compliments well.

Without too much detail, they quickly said their compliments and continued talking. Will would laugh and joke along with the rest of the Party; he enjoyed his time with them. However, despite his enjoyment, he couldn’t help but feel sad at his friend’s romantic life. Dustin couldn’t see Suzie all the time but it was so blatant that they were still going strong. Max and Lucas, currently sitting with Lucas’ arm around Max, seemed to get closer and closer everyday which by all means seemed to be impossible. Mike and El, who were situated with El between Mike’s legs her back against his chest and his arms wrapped around her, were always in contact.

Will wasn’t ashamed of his sexuality, it was just hard to find someone who would be willing to be in a relationship with another guy, in not only Indiana but Hawkins, Indiana. It weighed on him to know that he’d have to leave to find anybody not that he’d let any of his friends know that. They always said that he could come to them if he wanted to talk but, and nothing against them, he didn’t think his group of very straight friends would be able to sympathize with him in any capacity.

He was vaguely aware that as he was spacing out making his contributions to their antics less than ideal. In all honesty, Will found himself doing that a lot lately, spacing out of the conversations often missing crucial parts. He didn’t do it intentionally but he found himself daydreaming more and more about potential relationships, leaving him confused and wondering what the hell was going on. Now, for instance, they decided to take a trip to Benny’s Diner for some food making Will wonder when that decision had been made.

Piling into Mike’s car was never an easy feat but it wasn’t any easier with Lucas and Dustin practically yelling at each other. Dustin’s leg was up in the air nearly kicking Lucas after he attempted to nosedive into the car because apparently that makes perfect sense.

“Get your gross foot out of my face,” Lucas groaned as he tried to push it away.

“It’s in a shoe!” Dustin defended

“Like that makes it any better!”

“Both of you shut up,” Max threatened, “or we’ll leave you here,”

That didn’t necessarily stop them but it quieted them down considerably. At least Will’s ears would be saved, although he did have to listen to their quieted insults. The car ride was mainly just arguing about what food to get and who was going to pay.

“Why the hell would I pay?” Mike nearly exclaimed, “I drove you guys,”

“You’re the one who has the most money Maple Street,” Max argued

“Did you just nickname me after the street I live on?”

“I can’t pay,” Dustin added, “I didn’t bring any money,”

“I can pay for some of it,” El suggested, “I just need someone to help,”

“I’ll chip in,” Lucas said finally and that was that.

Normally, a trip to Benny’s would be uneventful filled with quiet eating. It followed the same pattern, order, wait and talk, then eat and spend the remainder of the meal in quiet simply enjoying the greasy bliss. Will enjoyed these moments, where they simply enjoyed each other’s company and forget any little annoyance they may have had before the meal.

So, of course, the ketchup Gods decided to throw Will’s life upside down.

It started like this, Will wanted more ketchup because there was nothing better than having a shit ton of ketchup to dip your fries in. So, when he decided to that the amount, he hadn’t been sufficient enough he stood up and walked to the ketchup dispenser. He grabbed two small cups and promptly filled them to the brim. When he decided that it was good enough, he turned to walk back to his table…. until he ran into someone and spilled the tomato concoction right onto someone’s blue t-shirt.

“Oh my god I’m so sorry,” Will apologized staring at the stain he caused.

“It’s fine,” a deep voice said, “I was looking for a way to get rid of this shirt, guess you gave me the opportunity,”

Will’s first question was, how is that his first response and not wanting to throttle him? The second thing he thought of was when he looked up at the guy. He was about Will’s age and had short black hair and light brown skin, he had a small smile on his face. Will didn’t necessarily consider himself a person who fell for someone just based on their looks, but this guy was cute which threw him for a loop.

“Uh, yeah I guess,” Will managed to stutter out.

The guy chuckled, “Well, thanks for the unintentional help,”

It took Will a full 5 seconds before he responded with, “Yeah, uh yeah, sorry again. I should probably, I should probably go-,” he shook his head and bolted towards the table his face burning with embarrassment. He ignored the questioning looks and ate his fries plain.

  1. ** Fall Face First into Paint**

Will was usually in the zone when he was drawing or painting. In fact, he was currently in charge of the mural being painted at his school. He was sure that his classmates were beyond tired of his perfectionist habits and he wouldn’t blame them. He made his class spend a whole month on sketching and coloring alone and would send them to redraw it if he wasn’t happy with it (which rarely happens because they’re talented). Next, they spent a week and a half sketching it onto the wall and now, they’re painting.

He was currently squatting staring intently at the section they had done, making sure nothing was out of place. There happened to be a tin tray with paint sitting in it and he was squatting fairly close to it. He didn’t see anything too inherently wrong with the paint though he may ask Amanda do go over the yellow again, it was a little too pale.

The mural was supposed to be bright and capture everyone’s attention with an effortless pull. It was supposed to be like that one kid in school who everyone likes but when asked why they like them, they’re stumped, can’t figure out a solid answer.

The small patch of yellow wasn’t exuding that aura and Will couldn’t blame Amanda for it, she was trying to do a million other things for the mural. He knows that she’s a nice girl so he thinks for a moment that maybe he should ask someone else to do it, maybe he could do it. Then he’s hit with the reality that Amanda is the best with mixing colors so she should be the one to do it. He’ll be sure to thank her tomorrow and hope that she isn’t exasperated with him like everyone else was.

He was about to stand up when a voice came from behind him, “Wow, that looks incredible,”

Will was never the epitome of grace so he didn’t exactly find it surprising when the voice shocked him and caused his equilibrium to be thrown off and he fell right into the tin tray filled with paint.

Surprised? No, embarrassed? Yes.

“Woah,” the voice said, “you good man?”

Will gave a silent thumbs-up as he lifted his face. He turned but with the paint running down his face he couldn’t open his eyes. He hastily wiped off the paint around his eyes with his hands and opened them slightly to come face to face with the guy from the diner.

“Hey, you’re the dude from the diner,” he said with full recognition. How he managed to recognize Will while he was unintentionally becoming a smurf was beyond him, “I guess we can call this payback for my shirt,”

“Thought you said that you wanted to get rid of the shirt anyway,” Will mumbled as he blindly reached for a towel.

A deep chuckle arose and Will was thankful for the blue paint because he was 1000% sure he was blushing just from that laugh, “Guess you’re right,” it was silent for a moment while Will wiped his face best he could. It was awkward until the guy stuck out his hand, “I’m Kamili by the way,”

“Uh, Will,” was all he could say as he shook his hand- they were soft.

Later that day when he sees his friends again, he says that he had a painting accident, he mentioned Kamili which earned him some sly smirks.

  1. ** Make Such an Idiot of Yourself that Your Best Friend of 12 Years Walks Away**

It was safe to say that Mike and Will were best friends, irrefutable in fact. They had met in Kindergarten while one another was lonely and they sort of just clicked. Mike knew everything there was to know about Will and vice versa. When Mike had colored over Troy’s ‘masterpiece’ in first grade, Will knew about it. When Will had stolen the Patterson’s dog when it got loose for a week until he eventually gave it back in secret, Mike knew about it. When El had first moved to Hawkins, Will was the first to know about Mike’s crush. And when Will realized he was gay; Mike was definitely the first to know about it.

Will was apprehensive to come out at first, especially to Mike. He didn’t want Mike to think he had a crush on him. He thought of him as a brother, years of bonding had proven that. Even Mike had expressed that Will was like the brother he never had. To have that flushed down the drain, it terrified him to the core. It filled his body with an intense amount of fear and it felt as though an intense river of ice was coursing through his veins with no remorse.

Turns out, he had nothing to worry about because Mike’s first reaction wasn’t grossed out or even question Will’s feelings. No, it was ‘I’m here for you man if you need someone to be there for anything you know I’ll be there, right by your side as always.’

Mike was there every time Will had come out.

So, yes, they were friends, brothers and everything in between. It wasn’t a big deal when they hung out together. Currently, they were going to see a movie that only they were interested in. It was just another horror movie, didn’t exactly stand out to them but they liked making fun of those kinds of movies.

They were in about to get in line for popcorn, amiably talking about their classes and throwing jabs at teachers that they didn’t quite like. It was nice, being able to just talk with his friends one on one. It rarely happened so when it did Will would savor every minute of it; that I until something or someone, caught his eye.

“Oh Jesus Christ,” Will couldn’t stop himself from saying.

“Hm?” Mike questioned tilting his head.

Will nodded his head, “Kamili, he’s right there,”

“The guy you like?”

“I do not like him,”

“Really? Could’ve fooled me,”

“He’s just some random guy that I’ve spilled ketchup on,”

“Your red face would say otherwise,”

Will pouted as they moved up the line for popcorn because no movie was complete without the joy of popcorn. He couldn’t go to a movie theater and not have popcorn; it was his weakness. Something he’d have to kick himself in the shins for at some point because Kamili was dealing out the popcorn.

“Oh, hey Will,” Kamili smiled as if Will wasn’t looking like he wanted the floor to swallow him whole. He made note of Mike who had a hand over his mouth like he was intensely scrutinizing every kernel of popcorn, but Will knew that the fucker was hiding a smile.

“Hey Kamili,” Will offered quietly.

“What movie are you guys seeing?”

“How’d you know we were seeing a movie,” the words got quieter as Will went on because he realized how stupid that sounded. Mike snorted and proceeded to hide his face with the hand previously hiding his smile.

Kamili raised an eyebrow not commenting on Mike’s reaction, “You’re at a-,”

“Yeah I know,” Will interrupted, “Zombie v. Human,”

“Not a good choice,”

“Yeah, we like to make fun of movies,”

“Then it’s a great choice,” and Kamili smiled that damn smile and Will found himself letting words tumble out of his mouth before he could stop himself,

“What brings you here?”

“Good God,” Mike said as his arm dropped and looked up at the ceiling before walking towards the sodas.

Will was thinking that the counter looks like a good place to smash his forehead a few times.

Kamili laughed and filled the popcorn bucket, “You’re a funny guy Will,”

“Thanks,” Will mumbled and walked off towards Mike.

  1. ** Slam Your Fingers in Your Locker**

Will was no novice when it came to breaking bones. He was a clumsy person and while he knows many clumsy people haven’t broken bones, he was the object of gravity’s hatred. He once broke his arm falling off a tree that Lucas had dared him to climb. When he was in Kindergarten, he broke his nose when he tripped and smashed his nose onto the steel slide. When he was in sixth grade he jumped over a wall while running from Troy and broke his leg.

So, yes, he could be considered an expert on broken bones and he knew what they felt like.

The reason he thinks of this in this exact moment started about twenty minutes ago. Will’s History class was teaming up with another History class for a project about the Civil War. You had to pick someone from the other class to partner up with and one person would make some visual representation while the other would to the report. He found this project incredibly dull and uninspired but it was History class and there wasn’t much creativity that needed to be shown. So, he kept his head down when the other class came in, hopefully, someone would come up to him and ask so he could save himself from an awkward social interaction.

“Hey Will,” a familiar voice asked, “Wanna be my partner?”

Will looked up at Kamili, and a wave of nausea washed over him. He was still emotionally recovering from the movie theater fiasco and was still trying and failing to shut Mike up about the whole ordeal. And even despite nausea and emotional trauma he was working on he found himself saying, “Yeah, sure,”

The rest of the class was spent deciding what to do for their project, they had decided early on that Will would take care of the visuals and Kamili would write the report. They had also spent a whole lot of time learning about each other. It wasn’t anything deep, though Will learned that Kamili had recently moved to Hawkins with his dad and sister. That he used to live in Rhode Island but his dad had gotten a job in Hawkins so they moved. Little things like that. Will expressed that he’d lived here his whole life and had an older brother who was currently in college with his girlfriend. By the end of class, Will feels a little less awkward around him.

Though he does continue to talk to Will after class ends, “I like it here you know? It’s different and pretty,”

“Try living here your whole life, trust me you’ll hate it,” Will commented as he opened his locker.

“Doubt that the only thing worrying me is how small it is,”

“Why’s that?”

“Because from what I’ve heard they’re not exactly the kindest to gay people,” Kamili shrugs and, unfortunately, he makes this comment as Will is closing his locker.

He’s always had a habit of slamming his lockers because it gave him confidence that it was closed and secure. Every single one of his friends told him that he was going to hurt himself eventually and he’s always laughed in their faces.

Until now.

Because Will is so startled by Kamili’s revelation that he slammed the locker right onto his fingers. He was met with searing pain that he had familiarized with a broken bone. All that left his mouth was a loud, “SHIT,” and he cradled his hand. Kamili’s eyes went wide as he grasped Will’s hand. And as much as Will wished he could say that it stung to have some other pressure on his hands but all he was met with was numbness.

“Will?” he heard El’s concerned voice ring through the discourse, “what happened?”

“He slammed the locker on his hand,”

“Oh!” her voice morphed to panic, “come on, I’ll have dad take you to the hospital,”

Will nodded as he stood up trying to hold back the tears, “See you later,” he nodded to Kamili as he walked off, barely taking in the look of extreme worry crossing his features.

  1. ** Slip and Fall in His Arms in the Middle of Your Moms Store**

Will loved his mom with every fiber of his being, she was the main cause as to how he didn’t die when he was twelve, sixth grade was an eventful year. She was strong and caring, while she could be a little overbearing at times it comes from a worried place. When he came out to her, she wrapped him in her arms and he had to tell her he was having trouble breathing for her to let go. Needless to say, when he broke his fingers from his apparent ‘nerdy super strength’ -as Johnathan called it when Will was explaining what happened over the phone- she had hurried into the hospital frantic and had him stay home for the rest of the week to rest.

While normally, Will loved any excuse to stay out of school he found himself extremely bored half the time. He asked her to take him to her work so it wouldn’t be so excruciatingly boring. Agreeing on the basis he helps her man the counter, he sat on the stool flipping through some magazine left in the back of the counter that was years old.

The bell rang and Will waved without saying anything too absorbed in whatever bullshit story the magazine was trying to sell, “Is that how you greet all your customers? Damn, you better not ever be a cashier because your customer service skills are lacking,”

Will rolled his eyes, “Hi to you too Mike, what brings you here?”

“Holly wanted some ice cream so I came here to get her something cheap,” Mike waved him off as he walked to the ice cream cooler.

In any given stance, brothers who just buy ice cream for their little sisters aren’t common. It’s usually because there’s blackmail involved, at least that’s how it looked with Lucas and Erica. Mike and Holly were different though, the older brother would do anything for her. Including getting ice cream if she asked for it.

“Ring me up Scotty,” Mike announced as he placed an ice cream cone down on the counter. He leaned over the counter crossing his arms and laying his chin on top of them.

Will snorted, “You got it, Kirk,”

The bell rang again as Will gave the change to Mike and when he looked up, he nearly fell off his stool. Kamili stood in the doorway staring at Will with a surprised look. His best friend looked over his shoulder and looked back at him smirking.

“Hey Will,” Kamili greeted

“H-hey,” Will replied slapping Mike with the magazine at his snicker.

“Didn’t know you worked here,”

“My mom does,”

“Oh,” Kamili nodded and continued to look through the aisles. Mike was trying his best to hold back his laughter.

“We’ve got a real smooth criminal in both of you, don’t we?” Mike laughed

“Oh, go give your sister her ice cream you dick,”

“She can wait a few more minutes,”

“I swear to God sometimes you’re insufferable,”

“Who would I be if I didn’t tease you?”

“Someone who isn’t a douchebag?”

Mike rolled his eyes, “Yeah, okay,”

It was then that they noticed Kamili was standing at the counter. His eyes flitted between Mike and Will awkwardly. Mike straightened himself up grabbing the ice cream and saluting the two of them before walking out the store. For a few seconds, the only noise was the bell slowly coming to a halt. Kamili coughed, though Will could tell it wasn’t cough it was just something to fill the emptiness of the store because his mom was on break so she wasn’t here to see her son becoming flustered at the mere sight of the new kid.

“I was, uh, wondering where I could find the toilet paper,” For the first time in knowing him, Kamili looked unsure of himself.

“Oh!” Will said maybe a bit too loudly, “Yeah, right this way,”

It wasn’t a big store by any means and the shelves were almost always full. They had a good income but not as good as some of the other stories on the block. Point being, if Kamili wanted to find the toilet paper, he only had to look for about two minutes before finding it. Will didn’t think too much about why he had asked to be shown.

“Here you are,” Will announced as he turned to face him, he was about a foot away like he was scared to come any closer.

“Thanks,” and Will didn’t like the sound of his voice. It was quiet, maybe a little shaky and definitely not his. His voice was usually happy and full of life despite the deep voice.

“Are you good?” he asked tilting his head and Kamili blushed,

“Yeah,”

And while Will knew it was a lie, he didn’t want to ask any further questions, because he doesn’t know him that well. So, all he did was nod and move to get out of the aisle not noticing the small puddle where he was stepping. Normally, he wouldn’t slip on those things being able to catch himself. But of course, because Kamili was here, Will had to make himself look like a fool. So, he slipped and he fell forward waiting to break his nose again. The impact never came and a pair of warm arms encircled around him protectively. He realized that he was currently against Kamili’s chest and he stayed there. In fact, he didn’t move until his mom came back in and started calling for him. Quickly, Will stood up and walked briskly over to the counter to greet his mom, not knowing what to say other than a quiet, ‘thank you’.

A minute later Kamili walked out of the store without a word.

He didn’t buy any toilet paper.

  1. ** Have Your Best Friend of 12 Years Talk to Him Without You There**

One thing to know about Mike is that he loved his girlfriend a lot. He had been with her since Freshman year and it’s been two years since then and he often lamented about how much he hopes that that time period would expand to the rest of his life. To him, she was the epitome of everything he could ever want and he couldn’t imagine being with anyone else. Just one of those things that kind of just stuck with him no matter the circumstance. They had a small lapse when she and Max became friends and she wanted to figure herself out. That lasted about four days before they got back together because to them it just felt right.

So, yes, he was deeply enamored with his girlfriend which is why he had to stop himself from laughing when Kamili came to talk to him.

He was waiting for El after school because they were going to go shopping for her dad’s birthday. Mike was leaning up against the lockers when Kamili walked up to him. Mike side-eyed him and made note that he looked nervous and slightly upset. Now, Mike’s done some stupid shit, said some stupid shit but never to Kamili. He didn’t know the dude outside of Will talking about him which seemed to be happening a lot these past few days.

“What’s up,” Mike said casually not straightening up from the lockers but he turned his head to make eye contact.

“I’m Kamili,” he said staring at him, he didn’t lift his hand in greeting.

So, neither did Mike, “So you are,”

“You and Will seem to be close, I just wanted to you know, get to know the people he hangs around.

Mike quirked his eyebrow, interesting, he thought before he said, “I’m Mike,”

“Right,” Kamili nods, “So, uh, how do you know Will?”

That’s when Mike finally understands and wow those people reading lessons with Lucas does help. Kamili thought he and Will were dating, Mike bit back a smile. That’s one of the best things he’s ever heard. It’s not like it’s the first time someone had thought he and Will were ‘romantically involved’ it happened all the time during middle school until Mike got a girlfriend. He was never necessarily bothered by it because who cares what their relationship was? He knew he was friends, brothers even, with Will so he never bothered to care. But now, with Kamili he has to correct him.

“I have a girlfriend,” he said simply lolling his head straight as to not look at the other male. He could see that he had looked at him in surprise, “and Will’s single too,”

All Kamili could do was nod slowly, a smile gracing his features as he walked away, knowing exactly what was meant by that conversation.

“Hey Mike,” El greeted standing beside him. Mike turned his body fully, “what were you doing talking to Kamili?”

He smiled and looped his arm around hers (which was a thing they did because it made them laugh, especially when El began singing ‘we’re off to see the wizard’), “Oh, nothing, just easing his mind.

When Mike recounted what happened to Will, his friend grabbed a pillow and hid his face in embarrassment.

  1. ** Have Your Self-Proclaimed Charmer Friend Try to Win Him Over for You**

Kamili transferred to Will’s Ap Bio class in the second semester.

He looks as surprised as Will does when he enters the room. He offered a small smile as he went to a seat on the other side of the classroom. After Mike’s talk with him two months ago they’ve been getting closer. Will now knows that Kamili doesn’t like cucumbers, that he was left behind by his closest friend after coming out and that his sister holds some sort of vendetta against him.

Lucas was sitting beside Will when he saw Kamili. He held a smug smile over his face and he nudged Will knowingly. Will glowers at him knowing full well that Lucas will try something if need be. Because Lucas, ever since he started dating Max automatically thinks that he’s the world’s best charmer. Mainly because no one has ever been able to have Max Mayfield willing date anyone for as long as she has Lucas. He thinks that because he’s been able to get back together with her five times, he has the secret touch. That he’s been blessed by ‘Aphrodite’s angels’ or something like that.

“I think I’m going to talk to him for you,” Lucas says smoothly.

And Will loves Lucas, he does. He was there for everything; he was the first to apologize after he and Mike got so wrapped up in having girlfriends, they didn’t want to spend time with him. Or at least that’s what it felt like. Lucas was always willing to fess up to anything he did but if he believed that it was someone else’s fault then he will wait until they say sorry first. Will admires that about him, he admires the loyalty he has but also the fact that he will not let up until the truth comes out. Will usually just went along with everyone else because it was easier and a lot less stressful.

But now, he feels nothing but contempt for him, “Don’t you dare,”

“How do you expect to get anywhere without saying something,”

“By that logic, I should be the one talking to him not you,”

“There’s nothing wrong with getting the ball to start rolling,”

Before Will could even stop him, Lucas is already across the room and talking to Kamili like they’ve been friends for years. At first, Kamili looks confused but quickly begins answering any of Lucas’ questions. Will is progressively slipping down into his chair because he can’t believe this is happening, well he _can_ believe this is happening because it’s Lucas. But he still refuses to believe it.

Eventually class ends and Lucas is exiting class while pointing finger guns at Will, who looks over to see Kamili staring at him.

Will sinks so low he falls off his chair.

  1. ** Have Your Outgoing Friend Try (and Fail) to Set You Up on a Date**

Max had been the newest addition to the group, only a year after El. She had quickly tied Lucas’ and Dustin’s hearts in an unknowing string and lead them around like loyal dogs. She had settled for Lucas and Dustin got over it. She became close friends with El. She and Mike still argue like an old married couple that was never married or in love. She and Will had an interesting relationship, they weren’t necessarily close but they weren’t too far apart. Max had often grabbed him if they’re friends were fighting and would stick by him during those times. She helped him say what needed to be said because he often hid it under a cloud of fake understanding.

Now, was not one of those times. Max had just pulled him aside one day and they were peacefully eating away from the others. When asked why she shrugged and kept on eating. Will doesn't question her after that.

“Lucas tells me he got the ball rolling for you and Kamili,” Max says as she finishes up her apple and tosses it into her paper bag.

Will doesn’t hold back his groan because around her, he doesn’t hide any of his emotions, “I wish he hadn’t done that. I love Lucas but he’s not exactly who I want dictating my love life,”

Max snorts, “I hear that. I have no clue why I still date him,”

“Because he’s been blessed by Aphrodite’s angels,” Will deadpans and Max cracks up.

Will likes it when he makes people laugh because it’s such a relief that people find him funny. Normally, he doesn’t try to make jokes, he knows he isn’t naturally funny or charismatic. He’s hyperaware that he can be awkward and often taken as the biggest softie around because you can tell him something and he’ll sympathize with you and not tell anyone. He likes that aspect of himself because that means people trust him, that was his reputation. He’s been pulled aside by many people, some of which he doesn’t even know, and they’ll just talk and he’ll listen. He’ll give a hug and be happy knowing he made someone’s day a little easier. When he makes someone laugh, however, he’s happy because he’s made someone’s day a little brighter.

“Of course, he is, why didn’t I see it before?” Max asks in a fake wistful tone that makes Will laugh because Max is naturally funny. Then she looks down to her scuffed vans and then back at Will almost shamefully, “I talked to him too,”

“What?”

_ Max normally would’ve never meddled in her friend’s personal lives because that was up to them and them only. She did feel though, that this dance that Will and Kamili were doing was getting old and uninteresting and well, she and Lucas have some similarities. _

_ She shares a class with him, English, a boring class really, nothing too incredibly interesting because the teacher was a monotone weirdo who doesn’t strive to entertain people. Usually, her classmates take it upon themselves to have some fun, which usually means that there are many paper airplane contests and spit wads thrown about the room. Many of which, Max has thrown herself and has earned her title as the Throwing and Spitting Queen. Today, however, she sat down next to Kamili who was doing nothing in particular to entertain himself._

_He looked over in surprise, “Hi, Max, right?”_

_She isn’t surprised he doesn’t know her name, Will hasn’t gone too far in introducing them, “The one and only,”_

_“I don’t know about that, I’ve met plenty of other Max’s here,” he teased and Max silently made a note to kick Will in the shin for not introducing them._

_“Well then that’s identity theft,” Max reasoned, “and I want to file a police report.”_

_Kamili laughed lightly, “I’m sure you’d win,”_

_“Damn straight,” Max agrees and after a few moments of thought she says, “Lucas and I are going to the arcade tonight, do you and Will want to come along?”_

_Kamili blushes and looks away, towards all of his classmates. His expression deteriorates into timidity and shame, “I can’t,”_

_And the conversation ended._

“Oh my God Max,” Will groaned

“I was just trying to be nice!” Max defended, “I wanted to help,”

“Max, this is why you can’t help,” Will says exasperated, “I mean no offense, but you are in a straight relationship in a small town. Face it, not many people are looking in your direction for the wrong reasons. If we went out, we’d get our asses beat, he’s scared of small towns because of that exact reason. Max, I appreciate it but, it’s just not the same,”

Max nods like she understands but he knows she doesn’t and Will kind of wishes he could hide his emotions from her.

  1. ** Have Your Kindest Friend and His Babysitter Make Things Painfully Obvious**

Dustin and Will were the last of their friends to truly let go of their childhood. Will because he had his childhood ripped out from under him and Dustin simply because he loved his childhood and if Will’s being honest, Dustin still lets himself into his childhood wonder. This had led them to become closer friends though. They helped each other grow up because they understood one another’s need to grasp onto childhood. It was fun, they would stay up and layout what was bothering them the most and all the other would have to say was, I understand.

Of course, being close to Dustin also means befriending Steve in the process.

Steve was always kind of an asshole, especially when he destroyed his brother’s camera. However, after dating Nancy he changed quickly, he became a babysitter for the rest of his high school life and one of his jobs had been Dustin. It was weird but Will never really found it in himself to question it. For whatever reason, Dustin and Steve became close friends and even though Steve managed to get into college (community but he still holds it in the highest regards) he still hung out with Dustin.

It became inevitable that Will would hang out with both of them and to his surprise he liked him. He was still a bit of an asshole but he was a caring one, he was like an older brother to everyone. They eventually had fallen into a rhythm of all three of them eating at a diner every Wednesday for dinner. It was their special little thing and while Will knew that Dustin and Steve were way closer as friends, it was nice to be included.

“Tell me about your little crush,” Steve says one day, “I’ve barely heard anything about him,”

Coming out to Steve wasn’t the traditional, let me sit you down and we’ll talk. It was more Will corrected him one day and they moved on from there. Talking about Kamili was difficult because he didn’t know where to start. There were just so many things he could say, like who he hates the nickname Kam, wants to be a Pediatrician, that he wants to have two dogs of no specific breed but just so he can name them Daisy and Dot because he liked those names. He could also say that he loves the color red but hates wearing it or that he only has one dimple instead of two.

So, he settles with, “He’s a nice and sweet guy, I don’t know what else to tell you,”

Steve settles back, crossing his arms and hummed, “Fair enough Byers, but I gotta tell you, after so many months of pining you’re going to get tired out,”

“As everyone keeps telling me,” Will mumbles stuffing a fry in his mouth.

“Steve be quiet obviously he’s upset,” Dustin mumbles

“I can see that I’m just trying to help,” Steve reasons with absolutely zero care.

“Well you’re not helping so maybe it's better to be quiet,” Dustin hisses

“Not like you’re any better,”

“I give wonderful advice,”

“Dude the last time you gave me advice the girl turned out to be a lesbian,”

“And now you have a kickass friend your age,”

“Whatever dude, all I’m saying this is the advice you can pay for,”

“No, it’s not,”

“Is too,”

“Is not,”

“Is-,”

“Are you guys good?” Kamili asks out of the blue. Will jumps at the sound of his voice and looks at him in surprise.

“Wh-what are you doing here?” Will manages

He shrugs, “Family wanted an outing,”

Will nods and Dustin pipes up, “We’re fine, Steve here is just giving awful advice,”

Steve grumbles, “It is not bad advice I was just telling you this,”

Dustin rolls his eyes, “It is not good advice Steve, I was just telling you this,”

“Yes, it is,”

“No, it’s not,”

“Is too”

“Is not,”

Will snaps in their faces, “We get it,”

“I’m just trying to help you score a date,” Steve shrugs

“A date,” Kamili wonders aloud looking over at Will who is sure he has a striking resemblance to a tomato right now, “With who?”

“With this kid named-,” Steve gets cut off by Dustin slapping a hand over his mouth. He smiles goofily.

“Oh no one,” he says like it was the most natural thing ever to shut Steve up, “definitely no one standing around here, nope not at all,”

Will’s face reddens, even more, Kamili looks at him in surprise, “Not to sound narcissistic but are they talking about me?”

Will nods reluctantly because there’s no way he can cover this up, “Yeah,”

“Oh,” Kamili says and for a few moments, all Will can here is Steve and Dustin arguing again. Then his face morphs from intrigued and happy to dismal, “you know I don’t want to date you right?”

That snaps the people across from Will's attention from their friction to the one that just started.

And Will’s world just shattered.

He stiffly stands up prepared to walk out not letting the tears come in front of him. Then he feels Kamili’s hands which used to be warm and soft just feel cold now. That’s what sends a waterfall of tears down.

He tears his wrist away and walks back to his house.

  1. ** Have Your Sweet Almost Step-Sister Fix Everything**

El and Will didn’t talk much when she first moved to Hawkins. It only happens when her dad and his mom began dating. They spent a lot of time together and they know that as soon as they go to college their parents will move in together. Will learned a lot about El, like how she grew up extremely sheltered so she was severely lacking in the social skills department. He appreciated her bluntness and overall sweet personality.

That doesn’t mean she’ll let you get away with anything though. If you piss her off or do anything mean-spirited towards her friends or family, it’s like hell’s incarnate. She looks terrifying when she’s mad, she has this glare that makes even her dad shudder. Once her source of anger has diminished, she turns to the person who got hurt and gives them the sweetest most genuine look of concern and begins helping them with whatever they need.

When she becomes a mother, she’s going to be a very powerful one.

So, when Will has been laying in his bed and not wanting to do anything, El’s pissed at whatever is upsetting her almost step-brother. He had refrained what had happened to him for a total of two days before she sat in his room and gave him a look. It wasn’t the glare, god no, it was her ‘tell me what’s going on or I’ll force it out of you’. Will watches her give him this look for about ten seconds before giving in.

“I won’t kill him,” El mutters, “I’ll just hurt him, severely,”

“Please don’t,” Will begged, “it’s not his fault he doesn’t want to date me,”

“No, it’s because he’s scared,” El seethed, “he’s too afraid to say that he does want to date you but doesn’t want to get jumped,”

“That’s understandable,”

“But he shouldn’t have framed it like that!” El exclaimed, exasperated with all of this.

She sits next to Will on his bed and sighs, she doesn’t say anything for the better part of three minutes before, “I know he’s scared. When you hear about what happens to people in those stories and your heart goes out to them. I can’t imagine what it must be like to be that situation like you and he is. I understand his hesitance but he phrased it in a way that makes it seem like he has never wanted you which is a lie. And friends don’t lie,”

Will doesn’t even mind that she has to pause every few seconds during her speech to place to words in the right order. He sits up and gives her a hug which she returns, “Thank you El,”

“You smell disgusting,”

“I literally haven’t left my room in two days I’ve been faking sick to get out of school,”

“Gross,”

…

Will hasn’t moved on but it’s Sunday and he feels a little better because after his heart to heart with El- and a much-needed shower- they watched movies and ate whatever they could find. Today though, he’s leaving the house, to say hello, to the Sun that has been bitterly mocking him by remaining happy and shiny while he’s feeling sad and dull. Now, he feels like he can match the Sun’s energy.

When a knock on the door he trips over a rug in shock, typical.

El bounds into the living room and opens the door. She sidesteps almost immediately and Kamili is pushed inside by a Steve wearing sunglasses and an agitated Mike.

Will stands there with his mouth agape and El giggles, “Told you I’d help fix it,” and she’s dragging Mike outside by the hand.

Steve leans towards Kamili, “I’ve got my eyes on you,” it’s threatening and terrifying which completely contrasts his next statement, “Later Will,”

“Your friends, are insane,” Kamili manages to spurt out

Will shrugs, “They can be like that,”

It’s silent and Will doesn’t know what to say because he’s never been in this kind of situation before. Thankfully, Kamili knows exactly what to say, “I’m sorry about what I said, I’m just- terrified, I really like you but I’m scared about dating you. I wouldn’t mind y’ know dating in secret but that scares me too because what if we get found out? Would the pain be greater? I didn’t want to risk it,”

Will nods slowly, “Listen, I forgive you, I know it can be scary but we’ll just have to work it out. Take it slowly,” Will hesitates and quickly adds on, “if you want to,”

Kamili sticks out his hand, “To working it out?”

Will laughs and shakes his hand, “To working it out,”

**Author's Note:**

> I don't even know y'all. This was fun to write though so I hope you enjoyed it.
> 
> Tumblr~ @thedesertpenguin


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